Abstract

A plethora of communication protocols for home automation are currently in use. These protocols generally lack essential security features such as message authentication. Thus, smart homes are not protected against accidental or malicious message injection. In this paper we describe how jamming can be used to prevent processing of unsolicited messages in smart homes. We describe how jamming based protection can be added to a home automation system without impairing legitimate transmissions in neighbouring houses. Furthermore, we present the initial evaluation of a jamming device and its capability to secure networks of a variety of protocol types. Our evaluation shows that even a single jamming device can significantly improve the security of a smart home.